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4.e 1 staff report - 2016 health in comprehensive planning partner project funding Staff Report Date of Meeting: To: City Council From: Neil Soltis, Administrator Re: 2016 Health in Comprehensive Planning Partner Project funding Background: Living Healthy in Washington County (LHWC) is pleased to announce an opportunity for cities to apply for 2016 Health in Comprehensive Planning Partner Project funding. These funds are made available through the Statewide Health Improvement Program (SHIP), which strives to help Minnesotans lead longer, healthier lives by preventing the chronic disease risk factors of tobacco use and exposure, poor nutrition and physical inactivity. The active living and healthy eating portion of Washington County’s SHIP grant focuses on using Policy, Systems and Environmental changes to increase opportunities for physical activity and consuming healthy foods Issue: Should the City proceed with a grant application? Details / Discussion: Sherri spoke with Ann Pung-Terwedo at the County and gathered the following information about this grant funding. She said that the County hopes to get applications from all over the County, and wants to make sure there is a geographic spread. One of their bigger goals is to get communities to think about health-related concerns and possibilities that are really unique to the community, and to get communities to identify unique elements that exist now, and how they might be supported with new policies or efforts coming out of the next Comp Plan. So she thinks if there are some things unique to Scandia related to healthy foods, local food production (honey, etc.), healthy living, that should be identified as something that is part of the community identity & goals for the next Comp Plan, those would be good options for the grant. Options:  Recommend that Planning staff prepare a grant application  Take no action on a grant application Recommendation: The City will need to begin its comprehensive planning process in 2017 in order to be completed by December 31, 2018. With the % of seniors living in Scandia and the high % of agricultural land, the assessment would provide very useful data for the planning process.